Star of Courage

• Awarded on: March 7, 1977
• Invested on: June 17, 1977

Kathryn Panton gave her life to save a six-year-old girl from drowning in the Salt River near Mesa, Arizona, on 19 May 1973. The child was swimming close to shore and got into difficulty when swept by the current into open water. With no concern for her own safety Kathryn Panton raced to her aid and succeeded in handing her over to others; but she herself could not be pulled from the water. She was dragged several hundred yards downstream, where two youths finally managed to remove her inert body from the river. Artificial respiration was applied but to no effect.